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1.
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You must be aged 18 years or over and the council reserves the right to require proof of age.
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2.
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Your application must be on the appropriate form and accompanied by the full sum stated.
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3.
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The council reserves the right to refuse your application without giving any reason.
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4.
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You may apply for a letting up to 12 months in advance but the council reviews its scale of hire charges from 1 April each year. If, therefore, your letting falls on or after 1 April, the new charges will apply.
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5.
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You will appreciate that the letting will initially be only provisional and cannot be confirmed by the council until the Superintendent Registrar of the Medway Registration District has been informed of the letting and has confirmed to the council that the necessary registration staff will be available to celebrate the civil marriage. The council will then send you confirmation of the letting in writing.
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6.
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The premises or any part thereof may not be sub-let or sub-hired (neither may possession nor occupation be given) to a third party or parties.
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7.
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Even when the letting has been confirmed, the council may find itself in need of the use of the premises at very short notice, for example, if there is a national or local emergency. Although such circumstances are quite rare, the council must therefore reserve the right to cancel the letting and return the monies paid but without the payment of compensation of any kind, giving you as much notice as possible.
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8.
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Couples are required to give Notice of Marriage to the Superintendent Registrar of the district in which they live. If either the bride or the groom does not live within the Medway area, they are required to give Notice of Marriage to the Superintendent Registrar of the district where the person lives.
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9.
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If the council receives from you not less than one month’s written notice cancelling your letting, then an administrative charge of 20 per cent of the letting fee will be made and the balance will be returned to you but you will incur no other penalty from the council.
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10.
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If the council receives less than one month’s written notice of cancellation from you, the full sum will be forfeited unless someone else takes your letting, in which case, as above, an administrative charge of 20 per cent of the letting fee will be made but the balance will be returned to you.
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11.
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No personal payment is to be made to any council employee under any circumstances, whether or not they have carried out any work in connection with the letting. All payments (and enquiries) must be made to the address at the foot of the page.
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12.
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At the end of the letting, you are expected to leave the premises tidy and clean but if you do not, the council will arrange for the necessary work to be carried out and you will be charged the expense.
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13.
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The application form states the maximum capacity for the premises and it is your responsibility to ensure it is not exceeded.
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14.
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If any damage is caused to the premises or if any of the contents owned by the council are either damaged or go missing, the council will repair the damage and/or replace whatever is missing and you will be charged the expense.
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15.
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Nothing may be physically attached by any means to any part of the premises, neither may the existing lighting system, sound amplification or other electrical equipment be extended in any way without the council’s prior written consent.
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16.
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The council shall not be responsible for any loss, damage or injury (including death) caused to or sustained by any person arising out of or in connection with the letting, unless such loss, damage or injury (including death) was caused by some default or negligence on the part of the council and you will indemnify the council against all expenses, costs, fees and losses arising out of or in connection with, any claims resulting from such loss, damage or injury (including death).
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17.
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Please note that:
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- no food or drink may be served or consumed in any part of the building;
- any reading, music, words or performance which forms part of a ceremony of marriage celebrated on the premises must be secular in nature: for this purpose, any such material used either by way of introduction to or in any intervals between parts of or by way of conclusion to the ceremony shall be treated as forming part of the ceremony;
- any member of the public must be permitted access to the marriage ceremony without charge;
- no smoking is permitted in any part of the building or close to entrances;
- a civil marriage may take place on any day between the hours of 10.30am and 3.30pm;
- no rice or confetti (or any similar substance) may be thrown over the bride and groom either inside or outside the Guildhall: it is your responsibility to ensure compliance with this restriction and if any cleaning is caused by its breach, you will be charged the expenses.
- battery-powered, hand-held video camera may be used in the Guildhall Chamber provided the operator remains stationary and does not do anything which would constitute a distraction to the marriage ceremony: no additional lighting may be used without the agreement of the Superintendent Registrar.
- if admission charges have been introduced at the Guildhall by the time your wedding takes place, you will be required to supply a guest list to the assistants on duty to ensure that all bona-fide guests receive admission to the Guildhall for free.
- you are required to provide two ushers on the day to direct guests from the main doors of the Guildhall to the Guildhall Chamber on the first floor.
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18.
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You are reminded that the arrangements made for a marriage to take place at the Guildhall are conditional on the following:
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i) The attendance of the Superintendent Registrar and a Registrar of Marriages from the Medway Registration District. ii) The issue of the Authority or Authorities for the marriage by the Superintendent Registrar to whom Notice of Marriage has been given. iii) When Notice is given in a different registration district from the one where the marriage is taking place, the couple will have to collect the Authority before the day of the ceremony to ensure that it is delivered to the Registrar of Marriages who is to attend the ceremony. iv) The content of the ceremony must be agreed in advance with the Superintendent Registrar who will be attending the ceremony. v) The marriage must be solemnised in the presence not only of the Superintendent Registrar and a Registrar from the district of Medway but also in the presence of two other witnesses. It is therefore your responsibility to provide those two witnesses.
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